Schedule

Week 1:

The Transformation of Text in Science Communication

For your formative task, we’re going to start building a website. Here’s a starting point, if you’d like to try Wordpress

We begin this module by talking about the powerful ways in which the concept of textuality has changed in recent years. Consider a newspaper, one of the earliest forms of professional journalism. As a means of communication, newspapers have gone through many changes in recent years and we’ll consider what such changes mean for how we think about journalism, examining some of the deep, philosophical questions it asks us to consider.

A great introduction to these changes is found in the following video. Please watch it before our webinar and come along prepared to discuss.

WATCH ME:

READ ME…

Deuze, M. (2005) What is Journalism? Professional Identity and Ideology of Journalists Reconsidered, Journalism Theory, Practice and Criticism, 6(4) 442-464.

Week 2:

Digital Design in Science Communication

Understanding how to engage people online requires coming to terms with key principles in user experience design and science journalists have developed very different formats for different platforms. This week, we’ll examine and discuss key principles in digital design, focused on the rise of mobile platforms, while thinking about what the future of digital design looks like.

Week 3:

The Backpack Journalist and New Roles in Journalism

Central to the shift taking place in journalism today is the rise of mobile media and the capacity to function as a production studio while on the move. This week, we examine the consequences of the expansion of journalism into citizen journalism, the impact of professional quality technologies on the kinds of content that are made, and the new kinds of communities that exist which champion the values of open media.

WATCH ME:

Way back when citizen journalism was taking off, I became involved with a project to democratise the Olympic narrative around the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games through citizen journalism. We’ll talk more about this during the week, but take a look at this chapter from a feature length film called ‘With Glowing Hearts’, which puts the journey of citizen journalists into a tangible context…

There are also some great examples of ‘Tactical Media’ out there, such as this from the Yes men

but did their intervention work? This research says it may have backfired.

Week 5:

New Formats of Digital Experience (including VR, Drones)

The practice of journalism - and storytelling more widely - has always been interested in creative technologies. With each iteration of the media, new formats have emerged making possible new kinds of expression. This week, we’ll examine how journalists are using such environments as virtual reality, artificial intelligence, drones to advance the practice of journalism, creating new opportunities to immerse people into compelling stories about science.

Week 6:

Disruptive Media and Participatory Culture

While there is no singular way in which we can describe the media industries, there is common ground in the manner in which media content disrupts society. Sometimes, these disruptions can bring dramatic social changes, such as holding politicians to account, exposing vast conspiracies, but some of the most disruptive practices within the media have arisen through creating cultures of participation, where an expanded population take on the role of journalist to ensure an important message is heard. This week, we examine the potential of creative technology to bring about social change in science communication, consider what needs to happen next to make a major difference.

How to submit

We’d like you to do two things to submit your work. Please bear in mind first that one of the learning outcomes of the module is for you to have your own, established online presence. So, we’d like to make the submission as organic as possible to enable this. As such, the assessment components can all be pasted into your website and you can submit a document with links to these components. However, we’d ask you also to make a single pdf of all elements and submit that too. At the start of the PDF, you may include urls of the individual elements, to best showcase your work. The PDF functions as a back up in case anything goes wrong with your site, but also is a nice portfolio, which you can look back on. More detailed guidance will be given during the module.